Fiber, fiber everywhere

Picture this: day one of the nutrition conference is over and two very bloated dietitians are laying down to rest. What happened? Too much fiber, too fast. We were feeling the results of sampling all the new foods from the exhibit floor.
A huge trend we saw (and experienced) was the addition of fiber in everything from yogurts to snack bars and even ice cream. The type of fiber in foods like these is often inulin, a natural fiber found in fruits, vegetables and grains. It's found on the ingredient deck as the words "inulin" or "chicory root" (one source of inulin). Here's a good backgrounder on what inulin is and how it can benefit health. Adding fiber to foods is definitely a positive change that food companies are making since the majority of Americans don't eat even half of the required 25-35 grams each day. Fiber has numerous health benefits and can help greatly with weight control since it is filling, but passes undigested so does not add calories to the diet. Just keep in mind when adding fiber to your diet: drink more water to keep everything "moving along smoothly" AND increase fiber a bit at a time to keep the digestive side effects (ex. gas) to a minimum.
On day two, we learned our lesson and took samples to bring home so we could try them over the next few weeks rather than all at once.